CHAPTER 7: Merge
I don't know how long I was unconscious. All I remember was someone shaking me until I came around.
"Sawyer, wake up, man!" It was Matrix, calling me out of the comfortable depths of sleep.
I groaned, bringing my hand to my forehead. "Kill me now," I said. "Kill me now, and I might live."
"Somebody's messed with his marbles, boss," said another voice.
I opened my eyes. I was lying on my back, looking up into the faces of Matrix and several other binomes whom I'd been with in the German camp.
"What happened?" I asked. I tried to sit up.
"We don't know," Matrix said. "One second we're being chased by hell hounds and the next we wake up here."
"Here?"
I looked around. We were inside some kind of yurt; the walls were made of dried clay bricks, the roof was thatched with a hole in the top center to allow smoke to exit the structure. There was a fire going. Everyone had been given a mat of wool to lay on and I could see hollow gourds full of water and fruit next to each.
I was parched. One of the binomes handed me some water. It was crisp, cool and exactly what I needed to sate my thirst.
"How long have we been here?" I asked.
"Not long, I gather," Matrix said. "About an hour at the least. The sun still hasn't come up."
"What happened?"
"There was, I don't know, some kinda light, and then we all woke up here."
"You didn't happen to get smacked in the head did you?" I asked.
"I don't think so," he said. "But our weapons are gone, and I lost two good men back there to whatever that creature was. We need to get outta dodge and high-tail it back to St. Claire for reinforcements."
"Boss," said one of Matrix's soldiers, "we've got company."
The entrance of the yurt was covered by a wool blanket. It was pushed aside and two sprites entered. They were both females; one was AndrAIa, the other a sprite I'd never seen before.
AndrAIa's hair was pulled back into a long ponytail; exposing her pointed ears which were normally hidden under her aquamarine mane. She wore a loose fur robe that was meant to disguise her growing baby bump (she was halfway through her second trimester) and her neck and wrists were adorned with gold bracelets and necklaces. Her trident had become a long wooden staff with a large circular metal ring at its head and a shimmering diamond in its center. Something like a silver crown adorned her head.
The other female sprite had aqua blue skin and crimson red hair pinned back by the edges of a bronze crown. She wore a bikini made out of tanned animal leather and furs covered her feet up to her knees. She also carried a long scepter with a jewel fitted into its head. I was glad to see AndrAIa, but my comrades were more focused on her attractive, scantly clad companion. Their jaws were hanging open like the screws bolting their heads together had come loose.
"Why do you stare?" she asked, her hand on her hip. "Haven't you ever seen a woman before?"
"Boss," said one of the soldiers, "did we die? Because I think I'm seein' angles."
"Stow it, Perez," Matrix said cautiously.
"You see, my queen?" The blue-skinned game sprite was now addressing AndrAIa. "They mock us, just as the others did. We should dispose of the vermin now before more of their kind trespass further into our territory."
"Forgive us, your eminence," I said, rising to my feet and bowing slightly, my hands at my sides. "We meant no disrespect."
"Sawyer," Matrix whispered stressfully, "what are you doing?"
"Trust me," I said. I turned back to AndrAIa and her courtier. I was pretty good at working the game mechanics to my advantage by now. I just hoped my winning streak would hold out. I said:
"My name is Sawyer. My compatriots and I are soldiers. Forgive our trespass; we did not know we were in your territory."
"Explain yourself," AndrAIa said.
"Our country is at war with a mighty alliance of evil called the Axis. They present a great danger to everyone unlucky enough to lie in their path."
"We know of these Axis Powers," said the blue sprite. "Your 'sturmmenn' told us this much before we slaughtered them."
"The storm troopers are our enemies," I said. "They are the sword arm of the Axis. And if you indeed destroyed them we owe you a great debt of thanks."
"Then you are the Allies the sturmmenn spoke of," AndrAIa said.
"We are."
"Then we are now Allies," AndrAIa said. "The Axis has declared war on the elvish tribes by violating our homelands. Sit. We have much to discuss."
I sat back down. "This is Lieutenant Reznik," I said, introducing Matrix as his game character.
"He is your second?" asked the courtier.
"Second?" asked Matrix.
"She wants to know if I outrank you," I muttered. "Yes, he is my right hand. I command him and he commands his soldiers. It's the way we do things."
"I am the ruler of the Shi'ar," AndrAIa said. "My name is Ranna. This is my sister and my second, Korandi. Our tribe numbers in the many thousands. Our lands stretch from the base of the mountains in the east to the great river in the north and the Great Divide in the west."
"Sawyer," Matrix said, "there are no mountains in the east of France."
"We're not in France," I said. "What is this land of yours called?" I asked AndrAIa.
"It is called Rylaia," AndrAIa said. "You have never heard of it?"
"It's not on any map I've ever seen," Matrix said. "What's this broad sellin'?"
I ignored Matrix's question. "Ranna, has there been anything strange happening in your land lately?" I asked. "The ground trembles and there are places where the air shimmers."
"What do you know about it?" asked Korandi accusingly.
"It is happening to our land as well, and it is what has brought us, the Axis and the Allies, to Rylaia," I said. "There is a great power at work that has thrown our worlds together."
"You speak of dark magic, Sawyer," said Korandi. "Yet you say you have no knowledge of Rylaia or its ways."
"I am a traveler of many worlds," I said. "In one I am a scientist, in this one I am a soldier, in another I am almost considered a deity by some. It is because of this great imbalance that I must ask for your help. I seek to restore the world as it was before."
AndrAIa and Korandi looked at each other, and I wondered if I'd overplayed my role.
"You say you are from another world," AndrAIa said. "Of other lands beyond this existence, we are aware. Never before have we met travelers from beyond Rylaia. Before we fed the the Axis sturmmenn to our beasts, they spoke of their evil regime; they seek to destroy us and conquer Rylaia. What makes you different from them?"
"I only want to fix that which is broken," I said.
"And what do the Allies want?" asked AndrAIa, this time directing her question directly to Matrix.
"Lady, we only want what every other good ole' boy from Indiana wants," he said, "life, liberty and baseball."
"Baseball?" asked AndrAIa curiously.
"Yea. I root for the Cubs personally."
I looked at Matrix. "The Cubs? Seriously?"
"You got a problem with the Cubbies?" he asked incredulously.
"Only every other World Series," I said. "Oh, wait, I meant every other World Series before the 1930s!"
"I believe you've made your point," AndrAIa said. "We treasure the freedom to live life to the fullest. We will help you drive the Axis from Rylaia and then back to the dark pit they crawled from."
"Thank you," Matrix said. "We have people waiting for us in a village not far from here. We need to contact them. You took some equipment from us when we were captured. We need it back."
"It will be given to you," said AndrAIa. "Sister, take them."
Korandi escorted us out of the yurt. The elvish village was in a wooded area of oaks and pines tall enough that they formed a canopy that could totally mask the sun. There were many yurts made from the same dried clay bricks on either side of a well-worn path leading up to a kind of temple that looked like it had been carved out of the trunk of an immense poplar tree. Along the main thoroughfare were oil-coated torches lit to illuminate the central part of the village.
The population consisted of binomes and sprites alike, all wearing the same fur motif. The Mainframers here apparently believed they were forrest elves.
Korandi took us to another yurt where our guns and radio equipment were laid out on wooden tables.
Matrix told one of the binomes to get on the radio and raise St. Claire. While the others began doing function checks on their weapons, Matrix pulled me aside.
"What was all that back there?" he asked.
"It'll be easier if you just play along," I said. "I know what I'm doing."
"And keeping me in the dark, how does that fit in?"
"Believe it or not, I've had this conversation before, and it's getting really annoying," I said. "Take a good look around. This isn't France; it isn't even Earth. That thing that got the Germans so nervous, it's happened to us. Two worlds have collided, separate pieces of space and time that should never have touched are being pressed together. That's what's happened. Allied High Command has sent me in to fix the problem."
"If I wasn't standing right here, I'd say you were two smokes short of a full pack." He looked around, contemplating his surroundings. "Then again."
"Lieutenant," said the soldier on the radio. "I've got Dolan on shortwave. He's giving our position to First Marine Division. They'll air drop ten klicks north of where we found the Nazi camp."
"Good work," Matrix said.
"There's more, sir. Dolan says the sixth infantry division and the ninth artillery group are converging on the fifth's previous position. They've gotten reinforcements from the locals."
"Locals? As in the French?"
"Negative, sir," said the binome. "Locals, as in these folks."
Matrix and I turned to Korandi. "He certainly does not mean the elvish peoples," she said. "Where are the Axis now?"
"Roughly thirty klicks north of here," the binome said.
"That's oark land," Korandi said. "They must have made a pact with the oarks."
"Who or what is an oark?" I asked.
"They are savage creatures that live underground in the caves," she said. "They are cousins of the trolls, but much bigger and more physically powerful."
"Just tell me straight," Matrix said, "how much does it take to kill one?"
"I have seen your weapons. You will be able to hurt them, but to kill one you will need something much bigger."
"Great," Matrix said with a sigh. "What else can we expect?"
"If the oarks are with the Axis then so are the trolls. We must consult with my sister and the high circle. Come with me."
With Korandi, Matrix and I walked up the main thoroughfare and into Kolmar, the community meeting hall. Two great, tall pinewood doors stood open, leading inside. The interior was all one room, dominated by wooden tables and chairs where the people would come to eat their daily meals together. At the head of the hall was a great chair, elegantly carved like a throne. Heavy metal candelabras hung by chains from the ceiling, lighting the hall in a dull orange glow.
AndrAIa sat on the throne, surrounded by four other women who also wore crowns of different metals and carried wooden scepters with jewels. The elvish society was apparently matriarchal.
"We have heard news of the oarks," said Korandi. "They have forged a pact with the Axis."
The four leaders looked to each other then to AndrAIa.
"If this is true then surely the oarks will attack our villages on the northern border," said one leader.
"And the trolls will not be far behind them," said another. "The Axis have enlisted the aid of our worst enemies. How can we hope to defend ourselves?"
"That's where we come in," Matrix said. "The First Marine Division is going to air drop north of where you found us. You'll have two thousand American marines backing you up."
"Two thousand! Great Goddess, we may yet have a chance."
"We'll meet the Krauts head on at that point," Matrix said. "But if we're going to pull this off, we need an airtight plan."
Truer words were never spoken. Where was Dot when you needed her?
It was much later when we adjourned. We laid out a basic plan of attack based on how the oarks and trolls would be deployed with the German storm troopers. The trolls would make up the first wave of attack, cannon fodder. We would take them down with mines and mortars, no direct physical contact. The next wave would be German SS on motorcycles armed with automatic weapons. Those we would fight with elvish archers and our own Thompsons and M1 rifles. The big guns would come out with the oarks; great, brutish creatures with skin the color and consistency of poured cement and the brains of an angry bull.
The oarks would be dealt with by using delks, the creatures that attacked us at the fifth infantry's camp. Delks were used by the elvish as hounds. They were controlled by telepathic energy channeled through the staffs carried by the leadership. With AndrAIa's guidance, Matrix formed a strategy. There would be two flanks of delks; they would form a V. The tip would penetrate the forward lines of the German infantry like a spearhead. Once the lines were breached, the two flanks would separate and push the infantry in opposite directions, opening a hole for the marines to filter through and take on the SS face-to-face.
The enemy's artillery would likely position themselves atop a plateau roughly one mile away from the field where we would do battle with the Nazis. That was our main problem. With an elevated position like that, they could shell us to kingdom come. We couldn't count on an air strike, so before Matrix and the elves could make their attack, I would lead a small group to overpower the ninth artillery and disarm them.
I walked out of the hall feeling drained and weary. It was good that Welman called when he did because I was in need of some good news. Luckily, I had not lost the earpiece he gave me in the superhero game. There was a crackle of static, and I heard his voice come through like the clear ringing of a bell.
"Kevin, are you there?"
I tapped the key on the earpiece. "Welman, thank God. What took you so long?"
"The teleporter developed a few bugs because of the shifting game realities," Welman said. "I've corrected the problem. I can open a portal for you to return to The Citadel now."
"Not right now," I said. "I've found AndrAIa, and your oldest son is still with me. Their two game environments have merged."
"It isn't just you. There are mergers happening all across the system," Welman said. "Mouse had to fight her way through a heard of raptors to find Dot and Bob."
"Is she all right? Are they all right?"
"They're fine," Welman said. "Although, I must admit, having my own daughter not recognize me is very disconcerting."
"How did they take the transition?"
"Better than I originally believed they would, but I think you had something to do with that. They mentioned this was not their first experience crossing the border between realities."
"A little acclimation never hurts," I said. "Look, I can't leave now. I'm going to bring Matrix and AndrAIa back with me, but first we have to go to war."
"Kevin, it's a game," Welman said.
"But AndrAIa and Matrix don't understand that. If I'm going to recruit their help, I need to earn their trust. It's dangerous, but I think I can do it. Can you have the teleporter ready to pick us up in two milliseconds?"
"I'm reasonably sure," he said. "I can triangulate your position through the earpiece's signal, but the game environments are still in flux. I could lose you at any moment."
"Just do your best," I said. "I'll call you when we're ready to leave."
"I could send you some help," Welman said. "Enzo is still begging me to let him come after you."
"Will he retain his superpowers if he crosses over?"
"I don't know," said Welman. "Since the realities are merging, it's possible he could carry the necessary protocols with him, but it's a stretch."
"I don't want to take the risk, Welman," I said. "Enzo could come flying in and find himself not-so-bulletproof anymore. He's a great kid, but he's headstrong."
"Trust me, I know," Welman said. "Alright, Kevin, we'll play it your way. Although I'm not so sure I can keep Bob and Mouse away so easily. As soon as he heard you were fighting theā¦ah, 'Krauts' in France, it was all Dot could do to keep him from joining you armed with nothing but his revolver."
"Tell them to save their energy for what's coming," I said. "Compared to what we're going to face in the P.O., what I'm doing here is a walk in the park."
I clicked off and decided to walk around the village to clear my head. Our job was to hold the Germans at the fifth infantry's camp until the First Marine Division could drop in and relieve us. Once that happened, over two thousand marines would come charging through the hole in the front lines and it would all be over. The Germans would either surrender or be annihilated.
Korandi would lead the elves into battle in place of AndrAIa, who would remain in the village due to her pregnancy. The village leaders-all of them were amazonian warrior women-would ride with the delks into the heart of the battle. One leader wielding her staff could control up to twelve delk beasts. Minus AndrAIa, that would give us up to sixty delks to breach the forward lines. All this depended on my group taking out the ninth artillery. So long as the Germans held that plateau, they could reign death down on us in the form of mortars, howitzers and snipers. Hence, the battle would not begin until we took the artillery and waved a white flag over her ranks.
Had this been a real-life scenario, I might have stopped to consider the moral ramifications of what I was about to take part in. I told myself this wasn't a real war, it was only another person's interpretation of it. I had one mission only: save Mainframe. Practically speaking, I was in a Game Cube, and I was in a fight for my life and the lives of my friends. My highest priority was winning the game, which meant deleting my way through game sprites and any obstacle that kept me from my objective, which was erasing Sphinx and restoring the system.
I couldn't do that alone; I needed help from the people I was fighting for, whether they remembered who they really were or not.
I took a quick nap after that then washed myself in a nearby stream. The rest of Easy Company was already stationed in the forest beyond the German camp, laying down the mines for the first wave of trolls that would attack us first and giving us the locations so we wouldn't accidentally step on one of our own explosives. They were also radioing regular reports concerning enemy troop movements and the deployment of storm troopers with the oarks and trolls. When we finally got underway, I rode on the back of a delk along with one of the female matriarchs.
I learned that the elves could also use their staffs to cast spells for offensive and defensive purposes. The blinding light I saw just before passing out was an offensive spell meant to incapacitate an enemy without harming them. Our strategy was like this: while the delks attacked the forward line, the matriarchs leading them would simultaneously cast a number of defensive spells to protect their flanks from enemy fire. Once the tip of the spearhead pierced the German line, the matriarchs would then switch to offensive attacks to drive the line apart. The delks would be hypnotized to separate their formation and attack on their own while the elves held back reinforcements from further back.
I was given command of a small force of elves and two marines from Easy Company, the Game Sprite named Corporal Davis and a binome, Private Little. The elves in our detachment were mostly male game sprites and a few binomes. They were armed with metal knives and swords forged by their village blacksmith. In retrospect it seemed foolhardy to go up against a whole artillery unit with a bunch of breechcloth-wearing, sword-swinging vikings who lived in trees.
I was still wearing my leather peacoat and turtleneck, looking all the world like some pulp hero from the days of Doc Savage with my Thompson slung across my back and a pistol tucked under my belt. While the rest of the tribe was getting into position, my team was quietly sneaking up on the German ninth artillery from the rear. I had Corporal Davis spread the warriors under his charge in a long row along a ridge in front of the plateau. Below us was a flat bowl with forrest on either side. The battlefield was to be in the middle, where there was nothing but grass and small pond with the empty camp of the fifth infantry in the middle.
The ninth artillery consisted of eight howitzers and fifteen long-range mortars. They had dug themselves in behind a vertical rock wall disguised by a thicket of trees and bushes. Using this thicket as cover, we descended into position behind the Germans. A strong wind from the south rustled the shrubbery, masking the sound of our descent. The elves would hold below the ridge until we advanced with grenades, and while the Germans were distracted with us, the elves would attack from their forward position and we would all take the camp.
It didn't happen very quick or efficiently, as I had imagined it. On my signal, Davis, Little and I each threw two grenades each into the mist of the German trenches. There was loud shouting, surprise, and then a series of loud concussions as the grenades exploded. Davis and Little too left flank, I took right. I took cover behind a jeep and opened fire with my Thompson as three German soldiers came running round to intercept me. I moved out from behind the jeep and took cover behind an unmanned howitzer, tossing two more grenades.
The elves were in the thick of it now, going toe-to-toe with armed German storm troopers and slashing and hacking away with longswords and maces. That's when something unexpected happened. The artillery wasn't alone; they had friends. Samurai!
Not exactly samurai, but Japanese infantry armed with samurai swords. I couldn't believe it. The Japanese were supposed to be in the Pacific, not Eastern Europe. I remembered from my history that select units in the Japanese Army carried samurai swords into combat and actually fought with them. Legend said they were sharp enough to slice through the barrel of a machine gun and could just as easily decapitate a man.
Except they weren't supposed to be in France! Whoever designed this game did a shoddy job in their research, and I was paying the price.
Just after I emptied my first magazine, one of the samurai lunged at me from out of nowhere, thrusting his sword. I barely got out of the way, and instead the blade sliced through the sleeve of my jacket and cut into my arm. I gasped in pain, and he didn't give me any time to do anything else. He spun in the air and roundhouse kicked me square in the chest. The momentum knocked me back, but I stayed steady on my feet. I raised my Thompson to fire but the sickening click reminded me I was out of ammo. I cast it aside as he rushed me again, swiping at me with the razor-sharp blade. I thought I could hear the air molecules split as the sword arced through space.
I did an okay job of avoiding the samurai's attacks, but I couldn't keep it up forever. I found a piece of metal pipe and used it to parry his strikes, but again I was only stalling. Finally, he lunged at me again, this time aiming the tip for my heart. I didn't know if the pipe was long enough, but I was out of options. I sheathed the blade with the pipe while stepping to the side and twisting the hilt out of his infantryman's hands. I threw pipe and sword aside, and he full-body tackled me. He hadn't seen the pistol in my belt. So when he got on top to bash my brains in with the butt of his revolver, I snatched the small Model 1910 and fired a single shot through his chest.
He slumped back, face frozen in surprise. I laid there for a few seconds, breathing hard, and tried to remember he was only a character in a fictitious game. I got back up and found my Thompson. I slapped on a fresh drum magazine and found Davis. The ninth artillery had been smashed. Little was rigging a bomb to set off their ammo dump. I got a pair of field glasses and looked down into the valley and cringed at what I saw.
The Germans had started early. While we were trying to take the artillery's position, the Germans had gone ahead and sent in the first wave of trolls. The grassy plane below was now dotted with smoldering holes where mines had gone off. Added to that, the Germans had Panzers! A whole Panzer division was now making its way across the field toward the elvish lines. We hadn't been told about any tanks!
"Belay that!" I yelled. "Tell Little to forget the bomb and get as many of these guys on mortars and howitzers that we didn't destroy. Start shelling those tanks! I want them all as useless as scrap metal."
Davis bounced off to carry out my orders. I found a motorcycle and carriage and hopped on the saddle. It fired right up, and I took off downrange, headed right toward the battlefield. I can't remember what I was thinking at the time. All I knew is that Matrix and AndrAIa were going to get slaughtered. How I was going to help prevent that from happening, I don't know. I think my better judgement was clouded by the adrenaline because I still can't believe I did that.
I opened the throttle as much as it would go. I was soaring downhill fast. The first shells from the plateau came reigning down ahead of me, a few even successfully hit and destroyed a Panzer or two. I glanced down and noticed something rattling around in the carriage next to me. A box of dynamite with percussion fuses. I took a deep breath and turned my cycle into the coming armada of Panzers. I reached down and grabbed a stick of dynamite. I didn't know how long the fuse was set for, maybe five or ten seconds at the most. Again, I opened up my throttle and engaged the tanks head-on.
"I didn't really have time to notice the trolls lying around, but I got the impression they were less than three feet tall and had heads twice as big as their posture demanded. Their remains littered the battlefield, but otherwise I didn't contend with any. The mines set out by Easy Company did a pretty good job of eliminating them.
The tanks were occupied with trying to shell the plateau, their greatest threat being their own artillery turned against them. A single madman on a motorcycle didn't pose much of a threat to their armored skin. That would change when they figured out what I was carrying. I aimed my bike right in between two oncoming Panzers, dug out another piece of dynamite and popped their caps at the same time. I threw one in the path of the first Panzer and got just close enough to the second to toss it right on its track.
A few seconds later I heard two explosions and turned to see both Panzers had lost one set of tracks. They were now immobilized. Unfortunately, that was the easy part. The other tanks now saw I was a threat and a few of them turned their turrets on me. The ground began to explode around me as I made a zig-zag pattern across the battlefield to avoid being hit-not just from the tanks but also by the artillery on the plateau, although I was also helping them by giving them a target reference.
I managed to keep myself from being immobilized and took out a third Panzer with a dynamite stick.
The Germans must have started getting desperate because I eventually found myself in the path of a charging oark. They were uglier than Korandi gave them credit. Their faces were horrors of wilted flesh and horns, red eyes and a mouth full of pointed, jagged teeth. They stood over ten feet in height and upright, but their arms were disproportionate to their bodies and so drugged the ground by the knuckles. Their scaly skin was the color of wet limestone rock and their backs were covered in coarse, greenish hair.
I popped the cap on one more piece of dynamite and threw it back in the box. I revved up the throttle and took off to the meet the galloping heard of oarks. Halfway I rolled off the motorcycle and watched as the vehicle kept going and eventually exploded in a great fireball, blasting a few oarks with shrapnel. I would have been in trouble had it not been for Korandi charging in with her company of warrior women, guiding a spearhead of fierce delk beasts. I watched as the matriarchs unleashed a fantastic display of wild magic that forced the oarks to retreat.
It was finally working. The two flanks of delks were going to plow right through the German front lines. I could see some of the delks from my position, behind them now. I looked up in the sky and saw the air above filled with planes and parachutes. The marines were coming down, right on schedule. Oddly enough, my first reaction wasn't relief, but an overpowering urge to press forward and finish the job. I suddenly wished I hadn't let my cycle explode.
I wasn't left wanting. Matrix pulled up in a jeep with Corporal Davis behind the wheel.
"Sawyer," Matrix said, "I don't know where you get your guts from, but you can keep it all to yourself, brother. That was one of the craziest stunts I've ever seen."
"Just you wait," I said. "Crazy is still one step ahead of us."
The front lines broke. The First Marine Division moved in and forced the Germans to surrender. The elves were the real miracle workers of the operation, using their magic to protect the marines and inflict serious damage on the SS. It was over in less than a millisecond.
Matrix and I, and the rest of Easy Company, were ushered back to the village for a victory celebration. Along the way I tried to explain what was really going on in terms he could understand. I made it clear that the final battle was just around the corner, that I needed his help to restore the world to its proper form. I got through to him on some level, at least, although I don't think he completely grasped that his world was an illusion.
We entered Kolmar, the elven meeting hall, and were welcomed as heroes. There was to be a great feast to commemorate the battle.
"You have proven yourselves true friends of the Shi'ar," AndrAIa said, rejoicing in the news. "The Axis has been forever driven from the land of Rylaia. You shall all be remembered forever as our great allies."
"You know how to make an old marine feel appreciated, miss," Matrix said. "Unfortunately, for Sawyer and me that is, we can't stay for the celebration.
"The imbalance I spoke of still exists, Ranna," I said. "As long as our world remains fractured, Rylaia will always be in danger."
"What can we do to, Sawyer?" asked AndrAIa asked. "We are but simple folk, gifted with magic, yes, but we are not mages. But we are in your debt. Tell us what you need, and I will grant it."
"I need you to come with me," I said, "to another world. From there we will mount a final assault on the one who has done all this terrible damage."
"Me?" AndrAIa seemed flattered and frightened. "I would gladly join you and Lieutenant Reznik on your quest, but I am with child. I cannot possibly hope to serve you well."
"You're wrong," I said. "It would give me great comfort to know you and your baby are out of harm's way. I ask you to come only to satisfy my personal need to ensure your safety."
"Am I not safe in my own land?"
"It is no longer just your land, Ranna," I said. "Unless I am successful in my mission, others will come to seize your lands. Only by helping me restore the world to its proper form will Rylaia truly be saved, and I know you care about that deeply."
AndrAIa seemed resigned at first, but after considering it for a few seconds she said:
"This place you wish me to go, how many day's journey is it?"
"It is no journey at all," I said. I tapped the earpiece. "Welman, home in on my signal and activate the portal."
"Copy," Welman said on the other end.
There was a bright flash of light then space itself seemed to open up. A beam of light split the air until it formed a column of fluctuating light.
Everyone was awestruck at the spectacle.
"Sawyer," Matrix said, "did you do that?"
"Not exactly," I said. "There's nothing to be afraid of." I stuck my hand into the portal and pulled it back out. "This is a portal to another world where you will be safe until the world is restored."
"But what of my people?" AndrAIa asked. "I cannot abandon them."
"I'm sorry," I said, "but I can only take you."
"Sister," Korandi said, stepping forward, "you must not question the edict of Fate. You have been chosen to play a role in the Great Order. We will be waiting here for you."
AndrAIa nodded. "Thank you." She handed over her crown and scepter. She addressed the meeting hall: "Be well until I return. When the evil that plagues our land has been vanquished, I will see you all again."
I couldn't stand to tell her the truth, that after the system was restored she probably wouldn't even remember being Ranna.
She stepped forward and nodded to me. "I am ready."
I took her hand and guided her to the portal. Matrix joined us. He looked nervous.
"It's really just like walking across a room," I said soothingly.
They looked at one another then back at the portal. Matrix stepped through first then AndrAIa. I went last, giving the elvish one last look of goodbye.
I felt truly sorry that I would never see them again.
